99

December 2016/January 2017

Take your pick

London [Start-up]

Why buy when you can borrow? That’s the question posed by Library of Things, a new social enterprise in south London aiming to help people reduce waste, save money and cut down on crowded storage space. “People know how
a library works,” says co-director Sophia Wyatt, who runs the project along with Rebecca Trevalyan (pictured) and Emma Shaw. The difference: instead of a library you visit a jazzed-up shipping container; instead of books you borrow anything from
a garden fork to a power drill.

After a successful pilot scheme in 2014, the trio raised £15,000 (€17,000) through crowdfunding and convinced the likes of outdoor brands Berghaus and Patagonia to donate stock. “The physical space is key,” says Wyatt. As well as lending high-quality items, Library of Things hosts workshops that teach people how to use them.

The project is rooted in the community but the ambition is for the concept to be taken on by new teams and slotted into other contexts, be that a post office or a library. Oh, and the lendable objects aren’t all practical. Ukulele, anyone?libraryofthings.co.uk

Track record

Denver [Music]

“I remember getting my dad a turntable for Christmas and walking into a record store, wanting to buy everything,” says Matt Fiedler, co-founder and CEO of the Denver-based company Vinyl Me, Please. “That’s how we got the idea for launching a record club. We saw people getting into vinyl and we liked the idea of helping them discover new music.”

Established in 2013, the business quickly became profitable and now has 15,000 members worldwide. The club sends its members a monthly package, which includes an exclusively pressed album with an original artwork on the sleeve, along with a cocktail recipe.vinylmeplease.com

Turbulent times

Global [Air travel]

Airlines reflect the global political and financial climate and they too are feeling the repercussions of
the rise of terrorism, particularly flag-carriers in the Middle East including Emirates-rival Turkish Airlines. US airlines on the other hand are becoming profitable players following a decade of struggles since 9/11.

Next to terrorism, Brexit has taken its toll. Delta and Virgin Atlantic have announced route reductions to the UK; whether other airlines will follow depends on how Theresa May manoeuvres the nation’s departure from the EU. The good news: “Air travel remains historically extremely cheap,” says Murdo Morrison, head of strategic content at online aviation platform Flightglobal. “Liberalisation has been the biggest factor in this, with competition from low-cost carriers from 2000 onwards forcing legacy carriers to completely reinvent their business model.”

Keep your distance

Germany

A survey by GfK Marktforschung Nuremberg found that in Germany, two out of three employees and managers don’t want to be addressed by their first name – and they prefer the formal sie to the familiar du.

Q&A – Marianne Vikkula

CEO, Slush, Helsinki

Since its beginnings as an entrepreneurs’ get-together in 2008, Slush has become a global champion of start-up culture. Last year’s Helsinki conference attracted 15,000 people from more than 100 countries, with other conferences in Tokyo and Beijing. The rise of Marianne Vikkula has been similarly rapid: she joined Slush as a volunteer in 2012 and was appointed CEO in June this year.

What is Finland’s place in Europe’s start-up hierarchy?
Ten years ago there was very little start-up culture here but now there is a strong sense of community – people genuinely want to help each other. Access to venture capital is much better too but improving the talent
pool still needs work.

Slush Singapore: how did it come about?
Singapore has lots of great entrepreneurs and it has venture capital. Slush gets young people to help create a start-up movement from the ground up. That’s why we were approached by Singapore’s National Research Foundation.

What are investors looking for heading into 2017?
There is a lot of interest in virtual reality, artificial intelligence and innovation in food production. But most venture capitalists are simply looking for great teams to invest in.

Related

Proof that a less socially intense schedule won’t dilute the quality of your cultural life comes in the form of Oliver Hermanus’s beautiful South-African drama, Damien Chazelle’s jazzy new musical, Hazel English’s uplifting…

It didn’t take long for Frieze to find its Californian groove and the UK art fair is back in Los Angeles this month. Plus: training the lens on the male; farce and fantasy on stage and page; a new Nigerian journal offering…

As venues for audiophiles take off in global cities, with a heavy nod to the jazz-kissa of Tokyo, we explore three places where vinyl collections are played on some of the world’s best analogue equipment – with strong…

This autumn, the meaning and power of love get a fresh outing on stage, TV and in music. So get ready for plenty of laughs, tears and everything in between with the help of our indispensable guide to the top cultural picks…

The image of the starving artist, or the musician with nothing to show for their efforts other than a million YouTube fans and an overdraft, is well established. But, as these entrepreneurs show, there are ways to make…